Exciting Times

Hello!

Sorry for the inconsistancy of these updates, but I will try and keep them coming more regular from now on. It's been a few weeks since I last posted, so I'll try and catch you up!

The Hub

Praise God for the work He's been doing at the youth center! We've seen our "regulars" as well as a bunch of new faces lately! The Hub staff has started holding meetings with local teens and town members to get their input on how to get local kids more involved in programs. It's also a great time to hear what the teens want from a youth center and how the community can contribute in making that happen. Please keep these meetings in prayer so we can be sensitive to what the kids truly need and help in meeting those needs. As a result of these meetings, we've already seen kids that attend come to the Hub for Supper Club and Drop-In nights! It's been so exciting and such a blessing to get to know them.

It's been especially awesome for me lately to have great conversations with kids that at first seemed really distant or shy towards me. Over the weeks, I've seen such a change in their attitudes during Hub time! God is so good! It's exciting to see what He will continue to do. The thing continually on my heart is hearing these kids talk about God and wanting to know Him.... Until now, relationships are being built up and kids are getting more comfortable with the idea of even hanging out at a Christian place. (Many have been hesitant to come because of our Christian affiliation - thinking we'll be super strict and "holier than thou" - so it's exciting that they're actually checking it out for themselves!)

Mercy House

These past few weeks have been quite the roller coaster ride at the House. One of the women had a heart attack and had to be rushed to E.R. I'm thrilled to say that she's back at the House and recovering quite nicely. She's such a sweet lady, and it's been really neat to see her changing from before and after the heart attack. We were just talking the other day and laughed at the remark, "God works in mysterious ways!" It's so true... the ways He grabs our attention. Another lady in the house had a death in the family. But she has peace in knowing that her Uncle has gone to see Jesus. We've just been keeping the family in prayer because it's still tough for his wife and kids to lose someone so precious. The 3rd lady in the house has really been faced with tough decisions lately. It's our prayer that she would gain wisdom and direction from God through her situation. We can only be there to encourage her and love her.

PlayZone

PlayZone runs in 10 week sessions, and our tenth week is almost here. Laura (director of PlayZone) said the new sign up for the next session is already full! I can't wait to see the new kids that will be coming... but I am sad to say goodbye to the bright little faces we see now!

Connection Cafe

The Cafe is growing! We see new faces come in every week and most of them are continuing to come. The word is spreading fast in the community about this sweet time at the Center! My prayer is that God would work mighty things in every person that comes through the door. It's amazing what some share about their struggles and lives. And to hear some of them so hungry for God's Word and wanting to open up the Bible and just read is such an awesome thing!

In Other News....

God has just been showing me what a wild ride it is walking with Him. I've recently been reading this book called "Leading with Love" by Alexander Strauch. It's really great thus far. God's really been teaching me all about love lately. How He loves, how we should love as Christians, what it looks like to love others as He loves.... it's just such an amazing thing to study and realize for yourself, because it's honestly life changing. It changes the way I deal with people that I encounter and the situations that I find myself in. Perhaps I will expound upon this more in another post...

I've also been so floored to have visitors come see me over the past couple weeks! Some close friends of mine from Camp Li-Lo-Li have come up to visit and see where I am serving here. Those visits make my heart smile! I don't know how I am deserving of such beautiful friends! God is good!

Speaking of wonderful friends.... one more exciting thing to mention before I leave... I will be visiting Rochester the weekend of March 5th! Hopefully I'll be fortunate enough to see many of your smiling faces! I'm excited to visit home :]

Until next time...

Love,

Leesh